This Could Really be a Good Life
by WordAddict618
Summary: What happens when a wormhole sucks the Guardians of the Galaxy back to Earth - two years in the past?
1. I woke up in london yesterday

"Hold on, everyone!" Peter yelled, pulling the steering column of the _Milano_ hard. The ship spun to the right, narrowly avoiding an asteroid that was hurdling towards them.

"Let me drive, Quill!" Rocket pressed down on one of the flaps while engaging the thrusters, causing the ship to shoot forward.

Peter eased off, allowing Rocket more control, plotting a course through the small asteroid belt ahead of them. He could almost see the wheels in his co-pilots head turning as he mapped out basically the only available way through. "That way," he said, pushing the steering column the way he was indicating.

"Yeah, I see," Rocket said shortly. Together, they steered the _Milano_ through to other side of the rocky obstacle course.

The comm next to them crackled and Gamora's voice came through. "Are we safe?" she asked.

"Yup," Peter answered, ignoring Rocket asking when they were ever safe in the seat next to him. "Made it through without a scratch."

"Good," Gamora said, sounding faintly amused.

Beside Rocket there was a small rattling noise as Groot established himself beside the raccoon. "I am Groot," the small tree said, looking out the window intently.

"Yeah? What is it?" Rocket asked. He listened for a minute and then turned to Peter. "Quill, Groot says there's a wormhole coming up here."

"A _wormhole_?" Peter asked doubtfully. "Aren't those things just stories?"

Rocket rolled his eyes. "So are Infinity stones."

Peter's stomach rolled, remembering the awful minutes when he had grabbed the stone from Ronan's staff, feeling like his mind and body were coming apart from holding onto the purple gem, and yet being unable and unwilling to simply drop it to the planet's surface. "Where is it?" he asked instead, pulling up a star map on the display next to him.

"Out to starboard," Rocket said in unison with Gamora over the comm.

Peter looked out the window as Rocket started steering the other way. Just ahead of them, a mass of roiling green waited. It looked like what Peter figured smoke might look like if it had a solid form, reaching out wispy tendrils that evaporated as they got too far from the centre of the mass.

"There's a star jump just a few klicks from here," Rocket said, tapping his own star map. "Won't take long before we're in another system from this thing."

"Sounds good," Peter said.

"I am Groot!"

"What?" Rocket yanked hard on the steering column, and Peter cursed as he was thrown against the side of the ship.

"What the hell?" he gasped, sitting upright again.

Rocket didn't respond, instead manoeuvring the _Milano_ around the sudden shower of space debris that had come out of nowhere. There was some quick discussion between Groot and Gamora over the comm and then the little tree was nowhere to be found in the cockpit.

"Come on, Quill, I can't do this alone!" Rocket snapped, pulling the ship almost onto its side to avoid a white-hot chunk of metal speeding past.

Peter bit back a snarky reply, instead buckling in and grabbing his own steering column. What looked like pieces of a spaceship flew past, battering their hull but not damaging anything serious yet.

"How much more of this?" Peter shouted over the din.

"No idea!" Rocket yelled back.

Whatever slammed into them was big, that was all either of them knew later. The _Milano_ engine sputtered for a moment and then started up again but by that point it was too late and they were too far out of their path. One of the smoky green tendrils sucked them a little too close to the wormhole and suddenly they were falling.

It felt to Peter like they fell forever, but at the same time like they weren't moving. It was a weird sort of vertigo, feeling like gravity had utterly failed and yet like everything was stationary. It could have been minutes or hours or longer, none of them of knew. All there was around them was the wormhole, stretching out forever.

Eventually, a pinprick of something appeared. It grew closer and closer until it swallowed them and suddenly they were falling for real. There was a city skyline, light against the darkness of a night sky. Activating the thrusters, Peter fought to stabilize the _Milano._

Finally, with a loud roar, they kicked in and the skip hovered over the planet where the wormhole had spit them out.

"Ow, son of a bitch, that hurt," Rocket groaned, rubbing his head where he had smacked it on the central console.

"Do you know where we are?" Peter asked.

"No idea," Rocket shrugged. "Doesn't look like there's any docking platform either," he added, looking up at the atmosphere.

There was a crackle as the comm link came back on. "What was that?" Gamora demanded, Kraglin cursing in the background.

"Wormhole," Peter said, staring down at the city below them.

"Where are we?" Drax asked, his voice fainter than Gamora's.

Peter shook his head. "I don't know," he said, still looking down at the planet's surface. "Could be just about anywhere."

Just as he finished talking, the comm system cut out and was replaced by someone speaking in English. "Hey, you and your performing monkey there better follow me right now or there's going to be trouble."

"What?" Peter ignored Rocket's squawk of outrage and looked out the window to see a red and gold figure hovering in the air. Nodding once, it gestured for the _Milano_ to follow before flying over the city towards one of the taller buildings in the skyline.

o0o

Tony looked over his shoulder as he guided the strange spaceship towards the top of Stark Tower. It hadn't started shooting yet, so that was good, but it was still an alien spacecraft barely three months after the last invasion, so, not great. Hopefully, there weren't any S.H.I.E.L.D scientists that had seen the alien energy signatures before they'd been wiped from everywhere he could get his hands on.

The ship landed itself neatly on the roof, and Tony hovered slightly above it. "So," he said, without lifting his mask, "what are you guys doing here?"

 **A/N: So this is basically my headcanon for how the Guardians and the Avengers could meet. Keep in mind, nothing for the Avengers is canon past _The Avengers_ , but _GotG Vol. 2_ has happened. I tried to come up with a decent explanation, but I'm not sure it wasn't just hand-waving.**


	2. don't really know how I got here

Darcy was either totally screwed or in the best job in the world right now, and two a.m. was not the best time to figure it out. "Remind me where we're going again?" she yawned.

"New York," Jane said, "back to Stark Tower."

"To meet aliens."

"That's right," Jane said cheerfully, a bit _too_ cheerfully for Darcy but she could understand it. Having your interdimensional space boyfriend back only a few months after he left was nice. Even if he couldn't stay long.

"Where are these ones from?" Darcy asked, in an effort to keep talking and therefore stay awake.

Jane's smile fell a bit. "Well, we don't know exactly."

"Oh," Darcy nodded, suddenly understanding why they'd called Jane back again. "Time to work some more of your wicked, wicked science magic."

"That's a redundancy," Jane reminded her. "And yes, S.H.I.E.L.D wanted to know – "

"S.H.I.E.L.D?" Darcy demanded, louder than strictly necessary since there were only two of them in the car.

Jane sighed, shooting her a Look with a capital L. "Thor works for them now," she reminded. "And this is more for Mr. Stark than S.H.I.E.L.D proper this time."

"Meaning it's really only S.H.I.E.L.D in name only," Darcy finished for her. "Got it." Anything involving the Avengers was definitely something she wanted to be a part of. "Best job in the world, I guess," she murmured to herself.

o0o

"Okay," Peter looked at all the Guardians huddled around the small galley. "Who are we going to send out there to make a good impression?"

There was silence for a few seconds, followed by a snort from Rocket. "Make a good impression?" he repeated. "Are you even listening to yourself, Quill?"

"We're the good guys now," Peter sighed. Looking around the circle, he tried to catch people's eyes. "Anyone want to volunteer? Gamora?"

Gamora shook her head. "Diplomacy is not one of my strengths," she said firmly.

Peter sighed internally, reluctantly agreeing. "Anyone else?" He tried to catch Kraglin's eye, but the former Ravager started edging towards the door.

"I could go," Mantis offered, holding up her hand, "if you think I would be able to do it."

"She would be a good choice." Drax stated, staring at Peter.

"Really?" she said, smiling widely, and echoing Peter's thoughts.

Drax nodded, looking at her. "You put people off their guard. No one would think you are dangerous."

Groot, currently perched on Rocket's shoulder, nodded. "I am Groot."

"He thinks you and her should go," Rocket translated. He raised an eyebrow. "Only them? What about me?"

The small tree flicked his ear. "I am Groot," he said disapprovingly

"Okay fine, jeez," Rocket sighed.

Peter looked around the galley. Apparently everyone was fine with the choice, since no one was getting ready to duel over it. "All right then," he said, feeling like he should make it official. "Mantis and I will be the diplomatic team."

o0o

Tony Stark met them at the door to the Tower, still in his Iron Man suit with the faceplate open. "Glad you're here. We've got an alien ship on top of the Tower and the only thing we know about it is that it popped out of the sky above the city right before I called you."

Jane nodded. "Do you have any scans of the area?" she asked. "Did you pick up any strange energy readings?"

Tony nodded. "Down in the lab. Just get in the elevator and ask JARVIS to take you down there." Seeing her look of skepticism, he smiled. "No one else is in the Tower right now, and especially not there. You'll be fine."

Darcy was following her scientist into the Tower, when she stopped by a hand on her shoulder. "Not you," Tony said. "We need you as part of our official liaison team."

"S.H.I.E.L.D has a liaison team for aliens?" Darcy asked skeptically.

"No," Tony admitted. "They're remarkably unprepared in some situations, considering their reputation. I'm starting my own team and you're the best person we have."

He held out an arm, and Darcy took it. "Where are we going?" she asked as he wrapped his other arm around her middle.

"Top of the Tower," he said, his faceplate sliding into place. "Hold on tight."

It was the fastest Darcy had ever gone. She tried to say something, but the wind whipping through her hair made it impossible for her to speak, so she gave up. Before she knew it, they were hovering over the roof of Stark Tower.

"You can let go now," Tony said in her ear.

"Um," Darcy said. Forcing herself to detach, she stumbled a few steps before standing upright. "Wow."

o0o

"Should we go out there now?" Peter asked, watching through one of the _Milano's_ windows as the flying man from before landed on the roof again, this time carrying another person.

"I don't know," Mantis said from behind him.

"Do it," Rocket suggested from where he was checking the landing gear. "Put them on the defensive."

Peter sighed again. "Not attacking," he reminded Rocket.

Kraglin spoke up from where he was watching Rocket. "Wait for them to make the first move," he suggested. "It's what the Captain always told us."

Peter felt his heart clench at the mention of Yondu. "Yeah," he agreed. It was a good plan, especially when they were on a foreign planet. "Okay. We'll wait."

o0o

"All right," Darcy said, once she was able to talk again. "Where's the rest of the team?"

Tony shrugged in the armour somehow. "You're it for right now."

"I'm _it_?" Darcy asked, her voice going up an octave. "Where's everyone else?"

Tony lifted up a hand and started checking off fingers. "Banner is somewhere untraceable, Barton and Romanoff are on a mission for S.H.I.E.L.D right now, Rogers is probably hanging around Brooklyn right now, and Thor was called back to Asgard right away."

"Oh, Jane's not going to like that," Darcy said automatically, before realizing what Tony has just said. "So it's just me, a human with no powers or training?"

"And me," Tony said, shrugging again. Seeing the look that must have been on her face, he patted her on the shoulder. "Hey, every team starts somewhere, right?"

Forcing herself to stop wondering he managed to move so easily in the suit, Darcy approached the ship. "Where do we start?"


	3. new names and numbers that I don't know

**A/N: Wow, these are turning out a lot more dialogue-heavy than I thought they would. Thanks to everyone who's reviewed and followed this story; you guys are great!**

Jane stepped into the elevator and surveyed all the buttons. "Where should I go?" she wondered out loud.

"May I make a suggestion?" a British voice said.

 _JARVIS,_ Jane reminded herself, relaxing. "Of course," she said politely. Looking around, she frowned. "Could you also tell me where Darcy is?"

"Mr. Stark is taking her to speak with the aliens," JARVIS said smoothly. "May I take you to the lab with the relevant information?"

"I suppose," Jane said, "as long as Darcy's all right."

"Mr. Stark wouldn't harm her." Unless it was her imagination, the AI almost seemed insulted at the suggestion. Neither of them spoke for the rest of the ride, until the elevator stopped and the doors opened with a _ding._

Jane stepped out into the quiet lab. The lights were on, and the room was well-organized and ready for work, but there was something _off_ about it. She walked to the nearest bench, where a computer was already turned on and data was being loaded onto the screen. Sitting down, she started scrolling through it, before realizing. "That's it," she said under her breath. It was far too quiet.

"Miss Foster," JARVIS spoke again, making her jump. "Mr. Stark often prefers music to be played when he is working."

Jane smiled. "Thank you, JARVIS," she said, the sounds of classical music starting to fill the large room.

o0o

Sitting in the back of the _Milano_ , Peter faced Mantis again. "Remember what we talked about," he instructed, holding up three fingers. "We need to act normal."

"Act normal," Mantis echoed, a slight frown on her forehead.

"Find out where we are," Peter continued, lowering another finger.

"Find out where we are."

"And figure out how to get home," he ended, closing his fist.

"How to get home." Mantis smiled. "I can help you do that," she said confidently.

"Sounds good," Peter nodded. "Just don't influence anyone's emotions, or put anyone to sleep."

Rocket shrugged from where he was perched near the ceiling, watching them. "You never know, that could be useful, Quill."

Peter sighed, fighting the urge to go tell Rocket to bother someone else. "For the last time, we are the good guys now. We've saved the galaxy twice."

"Right," Rocket agreed. "For pay." Flipping himself upside down on his chair, he stared at Peter and Mantis. "We're like mercenaries who don't kill people."

"I am Groot," Groot said, sticking his head around the door.

"Most of the time," Rocket amended. "But hey, those ones deserved it."

Peter held up his hands in a time-out signal. "Okay, that's enough. We _try_ not to kill people, and this time we _definitely_ aren't going to. We're on a planet that's pretty advanced and the people look like they're made of metal."

"Like Nebula," Mantis mentioned. Her face brightened even more at the connection. "We can make friends with them."

" _Friends,_ " Rocket shuddered, flipping himself the right way up. "I don't even know why I hang out with you losers, I don't need more friends."

"Anyway," Peter said, wanting to make his point, "we are outmatched here. We're going to be nice about it and not go in guns blazing."

Groot waddled back into the room, extending one arm to pull himself up beside Rocket. "I am Groot," he remarked.

"You're right," Rocket agreed, looking at Peter. "It _will_ be strange."

o0o

"So, do we make first contact or what?" Darcy asked, staring at the ship. The design reminded her vaguely of a muscle car and printed neatly on the side was _Milano_. "Hey, like Alyssa Milano?" she wondered.

Tony sighed. "If _that's_ the only part of Earth culture aliens picked up I'm going to be very disappointed."

"I'm sure it's not," Darcy said. She stared at the ship for a bit longer. "Do you think that part's a door?" Not waiting for Tony's answer, she walked up and knocked on it. "Hello, is anyone in there?"

There was a beat of silence, and then the door started to open, with a ramp sliding out. "See? It worked," Darcy said, backing up to avoid the ramp.

"Uh-huh," Tony said flatly, his hand repulsors firing up with a slight hum. "Do you have your taser?"

"Of course," she answered, watching two figures walking down the ramp, one of them shorter than the other. There were lights on inside the ship, and Darcy couldn't make out any details. "Hi?" she said, as they stepped out onto the roof.

"Hello," the shorter figure said in slightly accented English. "My name is Mantis." The door started to close, revealing a woman with green skin and antennae. "You don't need to feel nervous," she said with a smile, the tips of her antennae glowing slightly as she put her hand on Darcy's arm.

"Whoa," Darcy said, feeling a wave of calm rush over her, numbing her senses and making everything slow down. She sighed happily. "That, that actually feels great," she mumbled, dropping her taser.

"Hey!" Tony shouted, levelling one hand at Mantis. "Step away from her!"

Immediately, the other person with Mantis rushed forward. "Remember what we talked about?" he asked in irritation.

The world sped up again, and Darcy blinked. "Okay, that was way too trippy even for me." Picking up her taser, she pointed it at Mantis. "Who are you?" she asked.

The man who had gotten off the ship with Mantis stepped in front of her. "Hi," he said. "We kind of got off on the wrong foot there. I'm Star-Lord and this is Mantis, and we're part of the Guardians of the Galaxy." He paused, and Darcy shrugged.

"Never heard of you," Tony said. He lowered his arm. "I'm Iron Man and this is Darcy Lewis, official head of our liaison team."

"I'm the head of the team?" Darcy asked him, tearing her attention away from the aliens.

"In a matter of speaking," he answered her, still looking at Star-Lord. "Now, why are you guys here?"

o0o

Jane stared at the calculations she'd written out, and the computer print-outs stuck to one wall. They all pointed to the same conclusion, which was impossible. "JARVIS," she said finally, "can you take me to Mr. Stark?"

The music died. "Certainly, Miss Foster. Mr. Stark is on the roof, which is the top button on the elevator panel."

Gathering up the most important sheets of paper, Jane stepped into the elevator shakily. It began to ascend steadily, and she considered the evidence she was holding in her hands. _Actual proof of a non-deliberate Einstein-Rosen bridge!_

The elevator stopped, and she stepped out onto the roof. In front of her was clearly a spaceship and Darcy and Mr. Stark were talking to two people. "JARVIS," she said, hoping the AI could still hear her, could you tell Mr. Stark I found the data?"

The only answer was one of the security cameras lights blinking, but a few seconds later, Mr. Stark said something to Darcy and turned towards her, walking across the roof.

"Okay," he said, flipping up his faceplate. "What've you got for me?"

"Well," she said, holding out her papers, "this points to an occurrence of a non-deliberate, randomly occurring Einstein-Rosen bridge, with an unpredictable point of origination."

"I might be a genius, but I'm not an astro-physicist," he said, taking the printouts.

Jane grimaced, re-arranging the words in her head. "It's an accidental wormhole, and we don't know where it came from or why," she translated.

"All right," he said, scanning the paper. "Well, the good news is they're friendly."

 **A/N: So, for everyone who doesn't know (which totally included me until today), the theories that Jane and Erik are talking about with Einstein-Rosen bridges in the beginning of** _Thor_ **, are just wormholes, which, in turn, are just bridges between places in space/dimensions. The Bifrost is just a deliberate wormhole that Asgardians use to travel from realm to realm and Loki creates one in _The Avengers_ for the Chitauri.**

 **This wormhole here is different because it started for no reason and in a random place, which is something no one's ever seen (and is purely theoretical as far as I can tell), and that's why Jane's so excited about it here.**


	4. there might be something that I'll miss

**A/N: Alternate title, Way Too Many Kraglin Feels, because, seriously, this got out of control.**

Kraglin sat in the small room outside of the galley that everyone had collectively dubbed the 'living room' of the _Milano_ , watching Gamora practice some of her simpler sword forms.

"D'you think they're all right?" he asked, nervously fiddling with Yondu's – well, no, it was his now – yaka arrow.

"I'm sure they're fine," Gamora said, bringing her sword down in a sharp arc. "We've faced stronger opponents before."

Kraglin shrugged. "I guess so." There was something about this planet that made him feel uncomfortable. His species wasn't psychic, like some, but he felt it in his gut that they'd been drawn here for a reason.

 _Always trust yer gut,_ Yondu had told him more than once. _It`ll save you when yer head`s too stupid to act._ It had been one of the Ravager captain`s first pieces of advice when Kraglin had started flying solo, and right now his gut was telling him that Peter had walked right into something that was maybe better left alone.

Putting the arrow down on the table, he whistled hesitantly. The arrow lifted off the table and flew around the room in a graceful, if wobbly, arc. Gamora sheathed her sword, watching the arrow as it landed back in Kraglin`s hand.

"I am Groot," an approving voice came from the doorway. Kraglin turned to see the small tree standing in the doorway. "I am Groot?" he asked.

Kraglin shifted in his seat, not quite sure what the tree was saying. Gamora sat down cross-legged on the floor and said, "He wants to know what you're doing." She looked at Groot and asked, "Where's Rocket?"

Pantomiming strong arms and a big chest, Groot said in as deep a voice as he could manage, "I am Groot."

"He's with Drax," Gamora translated.

Climbing up the leg of Kraglin's chair, onto the shelf next to him, Groot asked again, "I am Groot?"

"How do I explain it to him?" Kraglin asked Gamora. "I don't speak his language."

She shrugged. "He understands you. Talk to him." She closed her eyes and folded her hands in the precise way that let Kraglin – and everyone in the nearby vicinity – know she was meditating.

Kraglin cleared his throat, looking between the arrow he was holding and the little tree sitting next to him. _How do I do this?_ Finally, he whistled again, and the arrow lifted off his palm and hovered in the air. With a small trill, it swooped around in front of Groot and back into Kraglin's hand.

"Oooh," Groot said, extending one arm to touch the arrow.

Kraglin shrugged. "It won't do nuthin'," he said. "I think, I think it's gotta be me." He remembered the easy way Yondu had handled the arrow, the way he could send it cutting through enemies like they were paper and the way he'd used it to save himself and Peter during the battle with Ego.

"I am Groot," the tree said confidently, tapping the arrow.

Taking another breath, Kraglin let out a short, sharp whistle. The arrow sped through the air, scrawling untidy letters. _Tjsnk u._ "Whoops," he chuckled. "Guess I need more practice, eh?"

Groot shrugged, his arm back to normal length. He took a bite of some growth on his shoulder. "I am Groot," he said.

Kraglin chuckled. "All right," he said. Putting the arrow back on his belt, he went to the window and looked out. Peter and Mantis were still talking, but it still looked friendly. The heavy feeling settled back in his gut and he sighed. _Hope we know what we're doin' here._

o0o

Darcy looked between the two aliens. "So, where'd you come from?" she asked Star-Lord. He wasn't as hot as Thor, but there was certainly something to be said for space doing a lot for a guys looks.

"Well, a lot of places," he said with a shrug.

"Cool," she said. There was a moment of silence, and Darcy looked back over her shoulder to where Tony was talking with Jane. Her boss seemed to be excited about something, but Tony didn't appear to be sharing her level of enthusiasm.

"What are you?" Mantis asked, interrupting Darcy's train of thought.

Darcy started to speak, before cutting herself off. "Look, if I put my taser away, do you promise not to do that _thing_ to me again?"

"Of course," the alien woman nodded.

"Okay, awesome," Darcy said, tucking her taser back in her pocket. "Anyway, like I was saying, I'm not anything. Just a regular, Grade-A, human."

Star-Lord started to say something, but he was interrupted by Jane joining their group, followed by Tony. Stopping in front of everyone, Jane cleared her throat.

"I think I've discovered how you came here," she said. "It appears there was a wormhole that you went through and you came out here."

Star-Lord laughed genially. "No offense, but we could've told you that," he said.

Darcy sighed. "You mean we _didn't_ have to drive for an hour to get here?" she muttered to herself. "Figures." First Asgardians, now the Guardians of the Galaxy joining the group of smarty-pants aliens that were miles ahead of Earth technology. Then again, maybe being named official Earth liaison was worth it.

"Wait, you mean you _saw_ the wormhole?" Jane asked. Her eyes were getting the look Darcy recognized as the 'I'm going to go do research on this indefinitely unless you drag me out of the lab for food and sleep' look. "What did it look like?"

Star-Lord shrugged. "Like a green cloud," he said, looking slightly unnerved by Jane's reaction. "Sort of like it was made out of smoke, and it sort of sucked us in when we got close enough."

"All right," Jane nodded, scribbling notes on the papers she'd brought out with her. "Is there – "

"Hang on," Tony cut her off. "I think there are bigger questions here than that." Turning his head towards Mantis, he asked, "How'd you learn to do _that_ to her?" pointing to Darcy.

"I am an empath," she shrugged. "Ego raised me and taught me to control it."

"Right," Tony nodded. "Don't do it to any more of my people, okay?"

"Okay," Mantis agreed.

Looking at Star-Lord, Tony asked, "How many more of you are there? I know I saw a monkey or something with you already."

"He is not a monkey," Mantis said, cutting off what Star-Lord was starting to say. "He is a puppy!"

Tony sighed, which just sounded _weird_ in the Iron Man suit. "My mistake. Now, how many of you are there?"

"Seven," Star-Lord answered.

Of course. Of _course_ there were seven more aliens coming to Earth right after an invasion. Maybe it was like practice – the universe would just keep throwing things at them until they proved they could handle themselves. Darcy shuddered, imagining the possibilities.

Tony nodded. "Okay." He looked over the skyline, at the sunrise that was starting to spill into the sky. "Why don't we take this inside?"

Star-Lord held up a hand. "I want to take my team too."

Tony sighed again. "Can you promise they aren't a security risk?"

"Yes," Star-Lord said after a split-second hesitation.

"Then, yes." Tony agreed. "But you have to give me a chance to get some of my people too, even out the odds." He looked at Darcy and Jane. "Say, four more?"

"Sounds good," Star-Lord said. "We can wait for you." Turning towards the ship, he yelled, "Rocket! Open the door!" With a metal-on-metal sound, the ramp started lowering and the door opened. Stepping onto the ramp with Mantis, he waved to them. "See you in a few."

o0o

Once the _Milano_ 's door was shut, Tony lifted his faceplate. "Let's go inside the Tower," he said to Darcy and Jane. He was constructing a plan as they walked inside that involved at least _some_ alcohol, preferably more, and a nap, before JARVIS spoke in the elevator. "Sir, Director Fury is waiting to speak with you."


	5. there's airplanes I can't jump out

In a safe house deep in the heart of Europe, Natasha watched Clint clean his arrows, even though he hadn't used them since cleaning them two hours ago. Their contact was two hours late, and both of them were getting nervous. _Nervous is dangerous._

A faint crackle in her earpiece made her flinch and she lifted one hand to her ear. "Romanoff here," she said crisply. After days of radio silence, there was only one reason S.H.I.E.L.D would be contacting them now.

"Agents," came Maria Hill's voice, "you're needed at Stark Tower immediately."

"What about our contact?" Clint asked, hearing the same message over his earpiece.

"Reassigned," was the one-word answer. "Transport has been arranged for you, and you also have a new handler."

Natasha's heart thudded quickly for two beats, before she stopped it. _Coulson's dead,_ she reminded herself harshly. "Why are we needed in New York?" she asked instead, eliminating all but the barest of tremors from her voice and ignoring the sympathetic look Clint gave her.

Maria paused for half a second and then said exactly what both Natasha and Clint were expecting. "The Avengers are being brought back together."

After Maria cut the comm line, Natasha sighed. Clint looked over at her, twirling an arrow between his fingers. "A new handler," he said flatly.

"Coulson's dead," Natasha said, equally flatly. Hope was dangerous, especially if it was allowed to grow. She repeated it over and over mentally, until the words nearly lost their meaning. _Coulson's dead._

o0o

Gamora loosely folded her hands in her lap, focusing on keeping her breath slow and even. Meditation was one of the only things Thanos had taught her that she was grateful for. Something about this planet felt familiar – she knew Kraglin felt it too – and she was determined to understand what exactly it was. There was a strange feeling tickling at the base of her spine, and she tried to isolate it, understand it.

A dull _clang_ sounded as Peter and Mantis came back onto the ship, and Gamora opened her eyes. Peter walked into the living room, slumping onto one of the chairs. "How did it go?" she asked, intentionally casual.

Turning on his Zune, Peter listened to a few measures of a cheery, upbeat song play before sighing. "I don't know," he shrugged. "They agreed to more negotiation."

"That's good," Gamora said, raising both arms above her head and stretching. The feeling hadn't gone away, but it wasn't any stronger.

Peter stayed quiet for a moment before locking eyes with her. "Do you think there are other humans here besides Terra?" he asked softly, almost hopefully. "Like, regular humans just on other planets?"

 _Terra._ The odd feeling flared through Gamora and she gasped. _There was only one other place where I felt this – this power._ "Ego," she said softly. His entire being had been infused with it, and especially during that final fight they had all been inundated with it.

"What?" Peter asked, sitting upright. "What does my – _that guy_ have to do with it?"

Gamora was already walking quickly towards the cockpit. "I know where we are," she said over her shoulder to Peter.

o0o

Deep in the woods of Missouri, the fragment of Ego that he had implanted on this planet over forty years ago trembled. _Soon,_ something whispered to it from across space. _Soon we will fulfill our glorious purpose!_ Across the galaxy, thousands of other fragments received the same message.

In the _Milano,_ Peter felt something stirring in him that he hadn't felt since Ego's death, something he hadn't realized he had until days before it died.

o0o

Once he took his armour off, Tony stepped behind the bar in the living room and poured himself a glass of scotch, because damned if he wasn't going to have at least _one_ drink, before facing Fury.

"Stark, what do you know about this?" the director of S.H.I.E.L.D demanded, because of _course_ his damn security wasn't going to be respected.

"Nothing," Tony responded evenly.

Fury took a step forward, staring at him unnervingly. "Really," he said, clearly not believing what Tony was saying. "An alien ship lands on _your_ tower and _my_ scientists don't know how it got there, but somehow Dr. Foster is able to come up with a workable theory within six hours?" He scoffed. "Forgive me if I don't exactly feel convinced."

Tony sighed, taking a drink of scotch. _Dammit, I'm getting too old for this._ Putting the glass down on the counter with slightly more force than he intended, he decided to change tacks. "Why are you here, Fury?" Without giving the other man time to respond, he kept talking. "Is it because you want to execute your 'Initiative' again?"

"It worked last time." Fury said matter-of-factly.

"Barely. Have you even _seen_ any of us in the same area since then except for Barton and Romanoff?"

Fury glared at Tony. "I did what I had to do for everyone. This wasn't about some petty grudge, or a long-held revenge scheme. It was about saving the planet!"

"And you're trying it again," Tony said, not missing a beat. Draining his glass, he re-filled it and took another gulp. "You're going to drag all of us back together to do whatever it is you want and you'll lie and manipulate as much as you have to in order to get us there."

"You worked well together," Fury said calmly, watching Tony like a hawk. "All of you stepped up and pulled your weight."

Tony took a deep breath, clenching his free hand to stop it from shaking. "That's what it's about for you, isn't it? 'Pulling our weight' and making the calls you think are right. Like flying a nuke into space to save New York."

Fury's face turned dark. "That was _not_ my call," he said lowly. "That was the World Security Council."

"What about Coulson's death?" Tony bit off angrily. "Did he sacrifice enough to justify you using his memory like that and _lying_ about his last words?"

Any calm Fury had vanished like a candle being blown out. "Phil Coulson did the most anyone could have done," he snapped. "He _died_ to stop that son of a bitch Loki!"

Tony smirked bitterly _._ "No one knows yet, do they?" he said flatly, the question not a question at all.

Fury's good eye narrowed. "Knows what?" he asked sharply.

Tony drained the glass one last time before he answered, feeling the alcohol burn as he swallowed it. "That Coulson's alive."


	6. something to get off my chest

Waking up was the most painful thing that had ever happened to him. It felt like coming up out of a deep dark pool of water, except there was no air at the end, just broken glass. He gasped, trying to inhale something that wasn't fire in his lungs.

Through the fog of pain, he could feel IV's connected to his arms. _HYDRA,_ he knew. Reaching up with one hand, he clumsily located the tubes running into his arm and began tearing them out one by one.

Trying to open his eyes and look at the searing white light around him was more painful than breathing, so he didn't. Keeping them shut tightly, he groped around something to use to pull himself upright. More IV's were connected to him and he started ripping them out one by one. Whatever medical experiment they were doing, he wanted no part of it.

Finally able to move freely, he took a deep breath, ignoring the way it grated against his lungs and launched himself over the side of the bed he was in. Landing painfully on the floor, he tried to stand, but his ankle collapsed under him and with a sharp _crack_ he fell.

There was too much pain and he stayed down for a minute, trying to collect himself enough to open his eyes. The too-white light was still there, but he forced his eyes open through the tears and waited for them to adjust.

Footsteps rushed into the room with him and gentle hands started touching him. _No,_ he screamed, but all that came out was a wheezing noise. When the hands started trying to lift him back into the bed, he lashed out with his good leg. It connected, but whoever was carrying him didn't react much.

"It's all right," they said, their face a blur of colour, settling him back into bed. "Everything will be better soon," they continued softly, re-attaching the tubes he'd torn out.

 _Stop,_ he begged, but no sound would come out. _Leave me alone._ The pain of breathing hit him again full force and he gasped, feeling like his lungs were flooded with gasoline and his inhale had just lit a match.

"Estimated time of recovery?" a new voice asked, a swirl of black occupying the space at the foot of the bed. Keeping his eyes open was too painful, and he let them slip shut again.

He tried to hear the answer, but he was already slipping away, back to the deep water with no pain.

o0o

Darcy opened her eyes to light flooding her room. She rolled over and put on her glasses, catching sight of the alarm clock as she did. The red neon numbers read 9:47, and she sat bolt upright. _Oh shit, I'm so late,_ she thought for a second, before taking a good look around.

The bed she was in was bigger than any she'd ever owned, and the room was _definitely_ larger then her normal one. Slowly, the memories of the last night started to come back and she sighed in relief, flopping back against the pillows – which, now that she noticed, were basically clouds.

"JARVIS," she asked, "where's Jane?"

"Dr. Foster is in the main laboratory," was the predictable answer. "There is a fully functional kitchen on this floor if you would like something to eat, or the main kitchen is also accessible."

"Thanks, JARVIS," Darcy said, sitting up. Breakfast, she decided, sounded _great._ Jane wasn't the only one that had been running on coffee and convenience store snack food yesterday. A thought occurred to her, and she ran a hand through her hair. "Yup," she muttered. "Definitely shower time first."

"There is a full ensuite bathroom," JARVIS said.

Thanking the AI again, Darcy headed towards the door JARVIS indicated. Stepping into the bathroom, she paused. "Holy crap," she breathed. _That bathtub is huge!_ Reminding herself of the time, she reluctantly settled for a shower.

The shower turned out to be just as luxurious as everything else, and Darcy thoroughly enjoyed it. Feeling cleaner than she had in days, she dressed and headed to the kitchen for a quick breakfast. _And then,_ she said sternly to herself, _it's time to check on Jane._

o0o

"Sir, you have visitors," JARVIS said calmly over the sound of rock music Tony had blasting in his lab.

"Why?" Tony groaned. After Fury had left, he'd locked himself in his lab and started tinkering with the Mark VIII, which meant stripping out everything he'd been having trouble with and re-doing it.

"Sir," JARVIS said again, in the inflection that Tony regretted including when he was in this sort of mood.

"I heard you," Tony grumbled, heading to the door. "Give me ten minutes."

Seven and a half minutes later, after a quick shower, plenty of bitching to JARVIS, and tossing on clothes that didn't look like he'd worn them for a day and a half, Tony headed down to the main entrance of the Tower.

"Who is it, JARVIS?" he asked as an afterthought.

Before the AI could answer, Tony came around the corner and saw Natasha Romanov and Clint Barton already standing inside. Stopping in his tracks, he looked them up and down before continuing with practiced carelessness.

"Hey," he said with a faker smile and even faker casualness, "what brings you guys around?"

Natasha skewered him with a look that made it clear that she could see straight through his act. "Assistant Director Hill told us the Avengers were being re-assembled."

Tony sighed, mentally cursing out Fury, Hill, and all of S.H.I.E.L.D. "First I've heard of it," he replied.

Clint laughed shortly. "Where's everyone else?" he asked, like Tony was just keeping them in his pocket, ready to crawl out of the woodwork.

Tony shrugged. "Captain Stars-and-Stripes is probably in Brooklyn, Thor's back home, and no one knows where Banner is."

"All right," Natasha nodded. "Do you know why we're being called back together?"

Tony smirked. "It might have something to do with the alien ship on top of the Tower."

Natasha's eyebrows went up half an inch, the only sign she was shocked. "Really," she said, equally casually as Tony. "Are they a threat?"

"No," Tony answered. "They're more than willing to negotiate, actually."

Clint laughed humourlessly. "Well, that's a nice difference." His hand twitched towards the bow that was still slung over his shoulder before he clenched both hands into fists.

"Well," Tony said after a moment, "it's been great catching up, but would you like to see your floors?"

Natasha's eyebrows went up another half an inch, and Clint looked genuinely interested for the first time since the start of the conversation.

"JARVIS," Tony said, "could you show our guests to their quarters, please?"

o0o

"Absolutely sir," JARVIS said with a hint of _I-told-you-so_ in his voice. "Miss Romanov, Mr. Barton, if you would follow me?"

All the Guardians were once again convened in the galley. Gamora finished explaining what she had felt, and there was a shocked silence.

Peter was the one to break it. "So, you're saying I'm still half-Celestial?"

"I am Groot," Groot said, sitting in the middle of the table.

"Personally, I think the most ridiculous part of this is where we went _back in time_ ," Rocket said, looking between Gamora and Peter.

Kraglin cleared his throat, before nodding to Peter. "D'you think you could, y'know?" he asked.

"What?" Peter frowned. " _Oh_ , oh yeah. Um, maybe?" Reaching out his hands, he concentrated on feeling the light, the power he'd felt on Ego's planet. Focusing on pulling it up and towards him, he closed his eyes and reached into the Celestial half of himself.

After a few long minutes, he opened his eyes. "Nothing," he said, seeing his empty hands.

"Maybe we need to get closer to the source," Mantis suggested. "Ego's powers are stronger the closer you get."

"What?" Drax asked. "We are too far from Ego to reach him."

Gamora sat up straighter. "No, we aren't," she said, and it felt like a light switch was flipped in Peter's brain.

"No, we _aren't_ ," he echoed. "This planet has one of Ego's plant things on it! If we find out where it is, I can control it!"

o0o

"Why didn't you tell Quill?" Rocket demanded irritably after the meeting, cornering her in the cockpit.

Gamora bit her lip. _Because I didn't know how he'd react? Because Terra might be harmful to him? Because he isn't ready?_ She sighed silently, knowing that they were all horrible reasons and completely untrue. _Because I'm not ready,_ she admitted.

Rocket turned away, busying himself with a map. "The longer you wait, the more problems you're going to have," he warned.

"I know," Gamora snapped. Turning around, she started leaving the cockpit, but Rocket's voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Don't hurt Quill," he warned, except, it wasn't a warning. He looked at her. "Don't hurt Quill," he said again, he _pleaded_ , before turning around and refusing to look at her again.


	7. the window closes oh so quick

**I swear, all these plot points are relevant! I'm just trying to set them up in a way that makes sense, is all! Thanks again to everyone who's read this story. You guys are the best!**

"I don't like this," Clint said, sitting heavily on the end of the bed. The room JARVIS had brought them to was beautiful, but neither Natasha or him could focus on that.

"I know," Natasha nodded.

Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Clint took his sunglasses out of his pocket and slid them on. The cheap plastic bit into his skin uncomfortably, but it was better than having people know he wasn't looking them in the eye when they were talking to him.

They also couldn't see his eyes, and he had grown a little too tired of people not-so-subtly checking to make sure his eyes weren't still that horrifying shade of too-bright blue.

"I wish Coulson were here," he said eventually. Walking into an unfamiliar situation was fine with both his handler and his partner at his back. With Natasha, it was bearable, but they made it work. If it was ever him and only him for some God-forsaken reason, Clint was sure he'd refuse.

"I know," Natasha said again, quieter. Clint could see tears forming in her eyes, and she sucked in a breath, pacing up and down the room.

Neither of them spoke.

"Miss Romanov, Mr. Stark has some questions for you," JARVIS said, not even a hint of static announcing his presence.

Clint stood up. "I'm coming with you," he said. It was irrational – he knew Stark would never hurt her – but a part of him that had woken up with Loki still hadn't gone back to sleep. "I'm coming," he repeated, wishing he didn't feel like he couldn't be left alone.

"Okay," Natasha said, turning and leaving the room in front of him.

Clint followed, not quite sure what to do with the easy trust Natasha still seemed to have in him.

o0o

Steve wished he'd never woken up. It was a terrible sentiment, he knew, but there was a part of him that was exhausted of being picked up and tossed into unfamiliar situations without a word of warning, and it was getting larger. He'd woken up from the ice and been told he was suddenly seventy years in the future, and then, two weeks later, told he was needed to fight intergalactic aliens with no explanations.

Now, Brooklyn didn't even feel like home.

He'd found an apartment in the same area he'd grown up in, but it was different now. The sounds outside his window at night, the smells in the streets, even the buildings themselves felt wrong and unfamiliar.

He lay down on his couch, almost wishing he'd stayed at S.H.I.E.L.D.

There was a buzzing in his pocket, and he took the phone he'd been given out of his pocket. The caller ID read _Stark_ and he rolled his eyes before answering.

 _"Hey, Cap, we need you back here,"_ Tony said.

Steve opened his mouth to say _no, it's fine, please don't,_ but Tony kept talking.

 _"Listen, I know you're tired of people yanking your chain. Believe me, so am I. But we need you here, Cap."_

Steve could tell it wasn't a joke. He'd seen Howard when he was sincere, and his son had the same sound in his voice now. "All right," he said. "Stark Tower?"

 _"Got it in one."_

Steve sat up, grabbing the duffle bag he hadn't properly unpacked yet and headed out the door. In a strange way, heading back to the Tower felt right, like that was the one place he actually belonged, but he didn't allow himself to think too hard about it as he started up his motorcycle and headed towards Manhattan.

o0o

"What aren't you telling me?" Peter's question caught Gamora off guard.

"What?" she asked, looking at him over the table covered in maps and charts.

Peter shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "It feels like both you and Rocket are keeping something from me and I don't like it." He held up a hand. "And before you tell me I'm crazy," he went on, "I can tell when Rocket's lying. He's got his tells."

Gamora looked up at him, meeting his eyes. "Peter, I don't lie to people I love," she said firmly. "Thanos lied to me about _everything_ when I was young. Why would I do that to you?"

Peter shrugged, still staring at her. "It just – I don't know. There's something about this planet that I can recognize. Like, it already knows me." He laughed, "I know, it sounds nuts, but I swear it's true."

"Hey, Quill!" Rocket shouted from the cockpit, cutting off any reply Gamora might have tried to make. "I think I found it!"

Peter answered, already almost halfway up the stairs. "Ego?"

"Maybe," Rocket said. "Energy signature's similar."

Thirty seconds later, Gamora was left alone. _I'm sorry,_ she apologized mentally. _I swear I'm not trying to hurt you._

o0o

In his office, Nick Fury looked over the reports. "You're sure these are accurate?" he said, fixing the doctor with an unflinching stare.

"Y-yes sir," the doctor stammered. "The patient is responding well to treatment and should be fully conscious within the next two days."

"'Should be' isn't good enough," Fury said. "I need numbers."

"98.7 certainty, sir," the doctor replied, backing up with each syllable in a completely unsubtle attempt to leave the director's office.

Fury sighed. "Get out of here," he said. The doctor was gone before he finished speaking, and he looked down at the papers again. _For your sake, I hope this works, Phil._


End file.
